It should have been the pain that woke me up- but it wasn’t. No, it was my wolf’s stirring which pulled me out of the blissful midnight oblivion I had been clinging to. Restless, hungry, yearning- though for what, I didn’t know. I couldn’t think clearly enough to figure it out. All I knew was that I needed to get out of bed.

Something which was much easier said than done. I could barely move, weaker than a newborn, and the best I could do was open my eyes; and squinch them half shut against oppressive sunlight from the other side of the room. The wrong side of the room. My window at home was on the left of the bed, not the right.

“Where-” I started to question it, and it was like breathing flames. I choked on the agony of it, the coughing fit which ensued serving to tell me exactly how badly I was injured. My chest burned with a familiar pain of broken ribs; I knew the aching sting of healing cuts just as well. The sandpaper inside my throat was new, though, as was the thick layer of cotton which filled my mind.

I almost lost it when somebody touched me, gentle hands leering me up slightly off the bed. It made it easier to breathe through my rough throat- but with my restless wolf and the fear and panic which came from being in a foreign place, they were lucky they still had hands.

At least until I breathed in, and my world stilled for a moment. I had the keen senses of a wolf, I always had, but never quite like that. I could smell everything- and the wolf by my side had a scent which overpowered my fear in the most basic, instinctual way. If asked, I would never be able to explain in; it was a scent I only very dimly recognized from the wolf who had pulled me from the car, so it shouldn’t have been so instantly calming.

I couldn’t help it, though. My harsh, stuttering breaths came softer and slower, and breathing wasn’t fire anymore. I swallowed hard a few times, trying to bring moisture back into my throat, before I dared to ask who was holding me. And the kindness in his eyes when he answered was shocking.

Alyx Bronwin- I recognized the name now. Alpha of the Cereus pack, mated to a human, wiped from official pack history. Somebody I should never have met. So why was I practically in his arms, and why was the warmth of his scent enveloping me in a sense of safe serenity?

“I know this must be shocking for you, and we’re sorry about that.” The introduction of another voice had my head jerking to the side to find its source, a whimper creeping from my throat because even that much was painful. I was met by another kind smile, warming copper red eyes. My nose told me the person standing there was human… mostly. He had a hint of the wild scent of a wolf, but not enough to matter.

“Cean’s right about that.” Alyx’s voice was still gentle, careful as if he were afraid speaking too loudly would scare me. “We’re only trying to help you. We don’t mean to scare you, having you here with us so suddenly. I’m sure it’s going to be a lot to take in, but we’ll give you as much time as we can.”

It took me a moment to place the name. So he was Alyx’s mate? That explained the weird scent; I’d heard mating to a child of the stars did weird things to wolves, and couldn’t imagine what it did for a human. It seemed to give him more vitality; his black hair had a bright sheen to it that humans could only try to mimick with glossy product, and he looked very young for a human who had been with Alyx for so many years. Cean seemed unsettled by my curious gaze, frowning at me for a moment before he brought back the reassuring smile.

I turned my gaze away from him to look up at the man who held me. He didn’t look like the monster I had heard whispered stories of; he looked… normal. Brown hair feathered across his forehead and brushed the back of his neck, enhancing the light tan to his skin. His eyes were a dark, rich chocolate that drew at me in the way Viktor’s often did. It was instinct, the draw to a child of the stars, which every omega was supposed to feel. It was meant to lead to strong children to carry on the race- and a lot of good it did me.

Groaning, I raised a hand over my eyes; Alyx must have thought it was physical pain rather than emotional, as he made a sympathetic noise. “Cean, will you fetch Kibba? I’m sure Tsuki will feel better once he’s had something to drink, and we might even get food in his system.”

“You mean-”

“What else would I mean, Cean?” His tone was exasperated, but held a loving warmth which pulled at my heart. Alyx had been exiled for something as simple as love, and I understood it even less when I could see it in his eyes. Children or no, how could the packs discourage something so beautiful?

Cean nodded, his smile more intimate as he silently responded to his mate, and left the room. Once the door clicked softly behind him, Alyx helped raise me back against the headboard so that I could sit up properly without his support. I had to assure him several times that I was fine before he would even move the few inches to the nightstand; there was a pitcher of water there, and an empty glass next to which he filled halfway before handing it to me.

He had to help keep my hand steady, his fingers around my wrist, but I managed to raise the glass to my lips. And the cold water was like heaven washing through my burned throat. It didn’t extinguish the fires, but it cooled them, and I would have drowned myself in the water in a desperate search for relief if Alyx hadn’t gently taken the glass away from me.

He laughed when I whined at him, low and soft; it made me blush, soft heat across my face, because it wasn’t a sound I’d consciously decided to make. “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure you have plenty to drink. But if you drink too much all at once, it will make you sick.”

“But-” My voice was a harsh rasp in my throat, and I was almost grateful that Alyx interrupted me.

“None of that. I promised to take care of you, Tsuki. I swear to the moon, I’ll make sure you get healthy again. So will you trust me, young wolf?”

Our gazes caught and held, in a breathless, endless moment. My wolf scratched at my control, fighting against my doubt; any concern I had slipped past my fingertips, and I found myself nodding. I didn’t have a choice. And more than that, a part of me desperately wanted to trust him. It was the first time a wolf other than Neo had promised to take care of me. It filled me with a sense of belonging I didn’t think was possible.

The soft creak of the door opening, which would have been inaudible to human ears but was painfull loud for me, ended the moment. I cleared my throat- which was like attempting to swallowing lava- before muttering a “Thank you,” in response to the alpha who was still staring at me.

Alyx beamed at me, obviously pleased. “Oh, good. I was worried I would have to try to convince you. But you have no reason to deny me, I suppose; you’re safe on Cereus pack territory, and I doubt that self-righteous bastard of a pack leader will make any attempts to get you back. Viktor will make excuses at the school while you are here, and your father was the one who contacted me. Is there… anybody else you want informed?”

I felt his piercing gaze, and was sure he expected an answer different than the one I gave him. “No.” I didn’t dwell on it any more than that. Neo had more important things to do than get involved with an exiled pack. So I gave all of my attention to the man who had walked through the door.

He was human, completely so, and the wrinkles around his eyes made his smile seem kind as he gingerly approached my bed. “Nice to see you awake, Tsuki. My name is Kibba- I’m a doctor, and I’m the one who has taken care of you while you’ve been unconscious.”

“How long?” I asked, and dreaded the answer when I saw him wince.

“It’s been three days. You hit your head rather hard; you’ve made a miraculous recovery, thanks to Alyx, I’m sure it won’t be more than a few days before we can let you out of bed.”

“Oh, thank god,” I breathed, receiving confused looks from both men. They didn’t know, and couldn’t possibly understand, my yearning to move. To shift, to run, to hunt- my wolf was screaming for release, which was strange considering I’d always had a lesser attachment to my wolf than most of my kind. It was part of being an omega, so it should have alarmed me to feel it so strongly.

I might have started to worry about it if Kibba hadn’t reached out to hand me a glass I hadn’t noticed in his hand. Taking it was automatic- staring at it in awed fascination after was natural, considering I was holding a glass filled to brimming with what looked for all the world like liquid silver. “What… is this?”

“Ah- well-” Kibba stumbled over the words, his gaze almost pleading as he looked to Alyx. It set off red flags, and we were both staring intently at him as he seemed to struggle over an answer.

He sighed in the end, shaking his head. “I can’t lie to you, I’d feel like a monster. It’s nectar from the moondrop. For the general population, we would have diluted it down until it was nearly water. But you… you were really in danger, Tsuki. Right, Kibba?”

“Right!” The doctor sounded much more confident then. “I didn’t have time to get somewhere with real equipment, but the damage to your head was the worst part. I’ve seen crashes like that too many times. If we hadn’t done something, you would have had brain damage. I can’t say how much, or how much it would have affected your life. But we didn’t want to risk it.”

I swallowed hard, the glass held tightly in both hands. “So… you’ve been dripping the blood of the moon down my throat hoping it would save my life? You know this has killed children of the stars before, right? And I’m just an omega?”

“Yes. I… took a calculated risk,” Alyx said. I could tell he was trying to sound nonchalant, but there was sharp worry in his gaze as he watched for my reaction.

And it was all so ridiculous that I ended up laughing. Not only was moondrop incredibly rare, but there were few wolves who were even allowed to reduce it down to the blood of the moon. It was the same substance used as ink for the tattoos which marked an alpha of a pack, as well as marking the mates of the children of the stars. It was supposed to be powerful and unpredictable, which was part of the reason for the rumors about mating with children of the stars- and was also the reason why they were the only ones meant to be exposed to it. And even that was for the tattoos. They certainly weren’t supposed to drink it.

“How’d you get that idea?” I asked, unable to resist.

Kibba glared at Alyx, and the wolf had the grace to look sheepish. “Ah… well, we sometimes face attacks from other packs who want to remove a disgrace like me from control. There was a particularly angry alpha who I wasn’t cautious enough with. Cean got involved, because he’s foolish, and he nearly died. I took another gamble- though we diluted it for him, and for each member of the pack we’ve treated with it since.”

I watched him for a moment before I laughed at him again, half in disbelief and half in genuine amusement. Cean sounded a little like Neo; rushing in to protect somebody he cared about, though nobody dared to injure Neo. The thought had my throat closing up for a moment, fingers tightening around the glass. Alyx was starting to open his mouth, concerned, when I put the glass to my lips and slammed back the liquid inside.

Alyx and Kibba gasped, both jumping forward, but I had drank it all before either of them could stop me. I pulled in a sharp breath to fill my aching lungs, and let it out on a soft sigh. The silver liquid tasted like sugar; it made me regret wiping away the remnants from my mouth with the back of my hand.

“You’re not supposed to drink it all at once!” Alyx groaned, settling back into his chair and giving me the same exasperated look he had directed at his mate earlier. “You’re going to be trouble, aren’t you?”

I laughed again, the sound clearer because my throat was already felling better. The longer I sat there, the further it spread, a comforting warmth which grew outward from my chest. It may have been in my mind, or it may have been the effects of the blood of the moon. At least it settled my wolf- and I was intensely grateful for that, though I had a feeling it would be even worse later.

“A few days, right, Kibba? And then I can walk around?” I questioned.

He looked torn for a moment before he gave a slow answer. “At least three days of bedrest, and then you can get out of bed. As long as somebody is with you at all times! And I can’t force you to stay, but it would be helpful if you would remain with the pack for the time being, until we’re sure you are okay.”

My uncertainty must have shown on my ace; Alyx leaned forward, putting his hand over mine and washing me over with the strong, soothing scent of a child of the stars. “It’s not a commitment. If you wish to return to your pack when you are healed, we won’t stop you. There are many things to learn here which I fear will affect your decision, but ultimately, it is yours- and I will make sure you get to choose, no matter what is said otherwise.”

I smiled in return to his fiercely protective tone. “Okay. I can’t say no to that. I’ll stay until I’m fully healed. But… do you have a pack of cards or something?”

Alyx laughed, loud and free, and my heart swelled with warmth. “I’m sure I can find one. We’ll keep you entertained. Thanks for trusting us, Tsuki.” He stood up, nodding to Kibba. They left the room together, voices quiet as they spoke together.

As soon as they were gone, I let my head tilt back against the headboard. My first breath was solid, but it shuddered on the way out, and I pressed my palms over my eyes to keep from crying. Alyx was right- it was a lot to take in all at once. My father knowing Alyx, being dosed with the blood of the moon, being asked to stay for who knew how long… I wasn’t sure how to process it yet.

So I decided not to. I was going to take this as a chance. I’d told my father I wanted to get stronger- I dimly remembered that, when he called me after the crash. Where better, than in the midst of a pack which might actually support me in that quest? Viktor had made it sound so tempting before, and I was growing ever more certain that I was going to leave Ipomoea.

I just hoped Neo would be able to accept that.